S.Amdt. 6057

1. Adds Subtitle G--Western Hemisphere Partnership SEC. 1281. SHORT TITLE wherever appropriate

   Adds a section

   Inserted: Subtitle G--Western Hemisphere Partnership SEC. 1281. SHORT TITLE.

   Inserted: This subtitle may be cited as the "Western Hemisphere Partnership Act of 2022".

   Inserted: SEC. 1282. UNITED STATES POLICY IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

   Inserted: It is the policy of the United States to promote security, stability, economic prosperity, and democratic governance in the Western Hemisphere by--

   Inserted: (1) enhancing the capacity and technical capabilities of partner nation government institutions, including civilian law enforcement, the judiciary, and security forces;

   Inserted: (2) encouraging private sector-led economic growth, respect for property rights, the rule of law, and enforceable investment rules; and

   Inserted: (3) advancing the principles and practices expressed in the Charter of the Organization of American States, the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man, and the Inter-American Democratic Charter.

   Inserted: SEC. 1283. PROMOTING SECURITY AND STABILITY IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

   Inserted: (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the United States should strengthen security cooperation with democratic nations in the Western Hemisphere to promote a secure hemisphere and to address the negative impacts of transnational criminal organizations and malign external state actors.

   Inserted: (b) Collaborative Efforts.--The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense and the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, may support the improvement of security conditions in the Western Hemisphere through collaborative efforts that--

   Inserted: (1) enhance the institutional capacity and technical capabilities of defense and security institutions in democratic partner nations to conduct national or regional security missions, including through regular bilateral and multilateral engagements, foreign military sales and financing, international military education, and training programs, and other means;

   Inserted: (2) provide technical assistance and material support (including, as appropriate, radars, vessels, and communications equipment) to relevant security forces to disrupt, degrade, and dismantle organizations involved in illicit narcotics trafficking, transnational criminal activities, illicit mining, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, and other illicit activities;

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   Inserted: (3) enhance the institutional capacity and technical capabilities of relevant civilian law enforcement and judicial institutions to strengthen the rule of law, respect of internationally-recognized human rights, and transparent governance and to improve regional cooperation to disrupt, degrade, and dismantle transnational organized criminal networks, terrorist organizations, including training and anticorruption programs and technical solutions and resources;

   Inserted: (4) enhance port management and maritime security partnerships and airport management and aviation security partnerships to disrupt, degrade, and dismantle transnational criminal networks and facilitate the legitimate flow of people, goods, and services;

   Inserted: (5) strengthen cooperation to deter illegal migration across the Western Hemisphere, dismantle human smuggling and trafficking networks, and increase cooperation to demonstrably strengthen migration management systems;

   Inserted: (6) counter the malign influence of state and non-state actors and misinformation and disinformation campaigns;

   Inserted: (7) foster mechanisms for cooperation on emergency preparedness and rapid recovery from natural disasters, including by--

   Inserted: (A) establishing regional preparedness, recovery, and emergency management centers to facilitate rapid response to survey and help maintain planning on regional disaster anticipated needs and possible resources; and

   Inserted: (B) training disaster recovery officials on latest techniques and lessons learned from United States experiences; and

   Inserted: (8) foster regional mechanisms for early warning and response to pandemics in the Western Hemisphere, including through--

   Inserted: (A) improved cooperation with and research by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through regional pandemic response centers;

   Inserted: (B) personnel exchanges for technology transfer and skills development; and

   Inserted: (C) surveying and mapping of health networks to build local health capacity.

   Inserted: (c) Limitations on Use of Technologies.--Operational technologies transferred pursuant to subsection (b) to partner governments for intelligence, defense, or law enforcement purposes should be used solely for the purposes for which the technology was intended. The United States shall take all necessary steps to ensure that the use of such operational technologies is consistent with United States law, including protections of freedom of expression, freedom of movement, and freedom of association.

   Inserted: SEC. 1284. PROMOTING DIGITALIZATION AND CYBERSECURITY IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

   Inserted: (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the United States should support digitalization and expand cybersecurity cooperation in the Western Hemisphere to promote economic prosperity and security of the region.

   Inserted: (b) Promotion of Digitalization and Cybersecurity.--The Secretary of State, in coordination with the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, may promote digitalization and cybersecurity in the Western Hemisphere through collaborative efforts that--

   Inserted: (1) promote connectivity and facilitation for e-commerce by trusted companies through bilateral or multilateral agreements or other relevant memoranda of understanding--

   Inserted: (A) to open market access on a national treatment, nondiscriminatory basis;

   Inserted: (B) to establish understandings and agreements on cybersecurity and appropriate "rules of the road" on other cyber issues through cyber diplomacy; and

   Inserted: (C) to help partner countries make their cyber infrastructure more resilient to attacks and easier to restore after an attack;

   Inserted: (2) advance the provision of digitized government services with the greatest likelihood of promoting transparency, lowering business costs, and expanding citizens' access to public services and public information; and

   Inserted: (3) develop robust cybersecurity partnerships--

   Inserted: (A) to share best practices to mitigate the risks to digital infrastructure from--

   Inserted: (i) the inclusion of components and architectures from untrusted providers in digital networks and communications supply chains; and

   Inserted: (ii) the management of architectures by untrusted providers, particularly providers with close ties to, or that are susceptible to pressure from, governments or security services without reliable legal checks on governmental powers;

   Inserted: (B) to effectively respond to cybersecurity threats, including state-sponsored threats; and

   Inserted: (C) to strengthen resilience against cyberattacks and cybercrime.

   Inserted: (c) Notification Requirement.--Any agreement, instrument, or memoranda of understanding, including any accompanying annexes, apendices, and implementation plans, related to efforts undertaken pursuant to subsection (b) should be submitted to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives not later than 30 days after completion of the agreement, instrument, or memoranda.

   Inserted: SEC. 1285. PROMOTING ECONOMIC AND COMMERCIAL PARTNERSHIPS IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

   Inserted: (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the United States should enhance economic and commercial ties with partners in the region to promote a prosperous Western Hemisphere by modernizing and deepening trade and investment frameworks, encouraging market-based economic reforms, and encouraging transparency and adherence to the rule of law in investment dealings.

   Inserted: (b) In General.--The Secretary of State, in coordination with the United States Trade Representative, the Chief Executive Officer of the Development Finance Corporation, and other relevant Federal agencies, may support the improvement of economic conditions in the Western Hemisphere through collaborative efforts that--

   Inserted: (1) facilitate a more open, transparent, and competitive environment for United States businesses and promote robust and comprehensive trade capacity-building and trade facilitation by--

   Inserted: (A) reducing trade and nontariff barriers between the countries in the region, establishing a mechanism for pursuing Mutual Recognition Agreements and Formalized Regulatory Cooperation Agreements in priority sectors of the economy;

   Inserted: (B) establishing a forum for discussing and evaluating technical and other assistance needs to help establish streamlined "single window" processes to facilitate movement of goods and common customs arrangements and procedures to lower costs of goods in transit and speed to destination;

   Inserted: (C) building relationships and exchanges between relevant regulatory bodies in the United States and democratic countries in the Western Hemisphere to promote best practices and transparency in rulemaking, implementation, and enforcement, and provide training and assistance to help improve supply chain management in the Western Hemisphere;

   Inserted: (D) establishing regional fora for identifying, raising, and addressing supply chain management issues, including infrastructure needs and strengthening of investment rules and regulatory frameworks; and

   Inserted: (E) establishing a dedicated program of trade missions and reverse trade missions to increase commercial contacts and ties between the United States and Western Hemisphere partner countries;

   Inserted: (2) establish frameworks or mechanisms to review the long-term financial sustainability and security implications of foreign investments in strategic sectors or services;

   Inserted: (3) establish competitive and transparent infrastructure project selection and procurement processes that promote transparency, open competition, financial sustainability, and robust adherence to global standards and norms; and

   Inserted: (4) advance robust and comprehensive energy production and integration, including through a more open, transparent, and competitive environment for United States companies competing in the Western Hemisphere, including by--

   Inserted: (A) facilitating further development of integrated regional energy markets;

   Inserted: (B) improving management of grids, including technical capability to ensure the trustworthiness of electricity providers, carriers, and management and distribution systems;

   Inserted: (C) facilitating private sector-led development of reliable power generation capacity;

   Inserted: (D) establishing a process for surveying grid capacity and management focused on identifying electricity service efficiencies and establishing cooperative mechanisms for providing technical assistance for--

   Inserted: (i) grid management, power pricing, and tariff issues;

   Inserted: (ii) establishing and maintaining appropriate regulatory best practices; and

   Inserted: (iii) proposals to establish regional power grids for the purpose of promoting the sale of excess supply to consumers across borders; and

   Inserted: (E) exploring opportunities to partner with the private sector and multilateral institutions, such as the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank, to promote universal access to reliable and affordable electricity in the Western Hemisphere.

   Inserted: SEC. 1286. PROMOTING TRANSPARENCY AND DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE.

   Inserted: (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the United States should support efforts to strengthen the capacity of democratic governance institutions and processes in the Western Hemisphere to promote a more transparent, democratic, and prosperous region.

   Inserted: (b) In General.--The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development and heads of other relevant Federal agencies, should support strengthening of democratic institutions and promoting transparence in the Western Hemisphere through collaborative efforts that--

   Inserted: (1) strengthen the capacity of national electoral institutions to ensure free, fair, and transparent electoral processes, including through pre-election assessment missions, technical assistance, and independent local and international election monitoring and observation missions;

   Inserted: (2) enhance the capabilities of democratically elected national legislatures, parliamentary bodies, and autonomous regulatory institutions to conduct oversight;

   Inserted: (3) strengthen the capacity of subnational government institutions to govern in a democratic and transparent manner, including through training and technical assistance;

   Inserted: (4) facilitate substantive collaborative dialogue between government, civil society, and the private sector to generate issue-based policies; and

   Inserted: (5) combat corruption at local and national levels, including through trainings, cooperation agreements, and bilateral or multilateral anticorruption mechanisms that strengthen attorneys general and prosecutors offices.

   Inserted: SEC. 1287. WESTERN HEMISPHERE DEFINED.

   Inserted: In this subtitle, the term "Western Hemisphere" does not include Cuba, Nicaragua, or Venezuela, except for purposes of section 1286.

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As printed